SOLUTION: It takes an older computer 4 times as long to send out a company's email as it does a newer computer. Working together, it takes the two computers 5 minutes to send out the emai

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Question 1135837: It takes an older computer 4 times as long to send out a company's email as it does a newer computer. Working together, it takes the two computers
5 minutes to send out the email. How long will it take the newer computer to send out the email on its own?

Answer by greenestamps(13195)   (Show Source): You can put this solution on YOUR website!


(1) By formal algebra....

Let x = number of minutes required by the newer computer
Then 4x = number of minutes required by the older computer

The fraction of the job done in 1 minute by the newer computer is 1/x; the fraction done by the older computer is 1/(4x)

It takes 5 minutes for the two computers together; so in 1 minute the fraction of the job they do together is 1/5. Then



Solve the equation to find the solution to the problem.

(2) Informally, using logical reasoning....

The newer computer works 4 times as fast as the older, so when working together it does 4/5 of the job.

If the newer computer can do 4/5 of the job in 5 minutes, it can do the whole job in ((5/4 times 5) minutes = 25/4 minutes = 6 1/4 minutes = 6 minutes 15 seconds.

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